Behavior of wires in parallel wire stayed cable under general corrosion effects

•We tested mechanical properties of wires at different corrosion extents.•We proposed an approach to simulate behavior of cable during corrosion.•The maximum cable tension has less effect on final deformation of wires.•The development of the residual deformation of corroded wires is described.

Many cable-stayed bridges around the world have their stayed cables replaced due to corrosion problem. The problem has in fact led to a worldwide concern about corrosion damage evolution in stayed cables. To have a deep understanding of the corrosion effects, an investigation regarding mechanical properties of wires at different corrosion extents and corrosion distributions at cable cross sections was conducted on the stayed cables replaced from Shimen Bridge in Chongqing, China. The result of the investigation was a contribution to the establishment of a model for mechanical behaviors of corroded wires and a support to the presumption of the corrosion distribution at cable cross sections. A numerical cable based on a parallel–series system was modeled to observe the mechanical behaviors of corroded cable in terms of given service load, cable length, and corrosion rate. It is noted in the paper that strain hardening begins from the worst corroded wire, and the residual deformation of the wire is leveled off after a period of rapid growth, which indicates a significant decrease of distributed loads of the wire.